1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an ink jet recording method and an ink jet recording apparatus.
2. Related Art
An ink jet recording method which causes a recording head of an ink jet recording apparatus to discharge minute ink droplets from nozzles to record an image on a recording medium is known in the related art. In recent years, the ink jet recording method has been used for recording an image not only on a recording medium having excellent ink absorbability (for example, plain paper, or the like), but also recording an image on a recording medium having less ink absorbability (low absorbability) (for example, an art paper, a coated paper, or the like), or a recording medium that hardly absorbs an ink (non-absorbability) (for example, plastic film, or the like). Also, the use of a water-based ink including water as a base has been reviewed as for an ink used for recording an image on the recording medium having low absorbability or non-absorbability, from a viewpoint of global environment and safety.
The water-based ink tends to be repelled on a recording medium having low absorbability or a recording medium having non-absorbability compared to a non-water-based ink including an organic solvent as a base. Accordingly, color unevenness of the recorded image is easily generated on the recording medium having low absorbability or non-absorbability. From this viewpoint, for example, it has been attempted to react a reaction liquid containing a multivalent metal salt with an aqueous (water-based) ink composition on the recording medium having low absorbability (JP-A-2009-226851, JP-A-2013-071277, and JP-A-2006-507159).
As described above, it is considered that inconvenience such as ink bleed of an image is suppressed, by bringing an ink into contact with a recording medium using a reaction liquid. However, JP-A-2009-226851, JP-A-2013-071277, and JP-A-2006-507159 disclose that the coated reaction liquid preferably has low water content (the amount of water after drying). In general, it is considered that when coating with the coloring ink is performed, after coating with the reaction liquid is performed and the reaction liquid is dried sufficiently, an image having excellent fixability is obtained, and the drying the reaction liquid has been attempted in the technologies disclosed in the above mentioned patent documents.
When the coloring ink is applied to the area where the reaction liquid is not dried, adhesion between the ink component and the recording medium may not be obtained sufficiently, and abrasion resistance (fixability) may not be sufficient. Specifically, when coating with the coloring ink is performed on the area where the reaction liquid is wet, the coloring ink is prematurely aggregated in an excessive manner, and the coloring ink may be fixed on the recording medium in a state of being in contacted with the recording medium insufficiently. Thus, there is a concern that adhesion of the coloring ink with the recording medium may be decreased, and fixability of a coating film may be decreased.
However, attaching the ink to the area before the reaction liquid is dried is more advantageous in that the ink component is more effectively aggregated and/or thickened, and the shape of the ink component becomes granular, and color developing properties improve. In the technologies of JP-A-2009-226851, JP-A-2013-071277, and JP-A-2006-507159, it is considered that securing of the fixability is the priority, and the color developing properties are not always sufficiently improved.
Furthermore, in order to dry the reaction liquid, when the configuration of heating the recording medium is provided, clogging of the recording head easily occurs, the time required for the drying becomes necessary, and miniaturization is difficult due to inclusion of a zone or drying unit for the drying in the apparatus, which is not preferable. Therefore, immediately recording an ink without providing the drying of the reaction liquid is advantageous, in order to increase the recording speed, make the apparatus compact without the drying zone, and reduce bad influence on the head due to the heating of a platen.